Lady Kelpi Translations

Chapter Seventeen:
Uncle Sheng Visits, Minglan Becomes Rich

After the commotion of that day, everyone from the wives to the maids in the household respected Kong Mama’s lessons even more, and no one dared to be contemptuous; especially Molan, who behaved as if her tail was between her legs. After the education of Kong Mama, Sheng Hong temporarily overcame his emotions with reason and slept in Madam Wang’s room for half a month, sobering up Concubine Lin and his daughter. Madam Wang’s face was bright every day and she was so happy that she nearly set off firecrackers. To say that this time, Sheng Hong had made up his mind to at least make a gesture to show Kong Mama and refused any request from Concubine Lin with great perseverance.

Concubine Lin saw that the situation wasn’t right, and finally came up with a unique move. She asked her son Changfeng to hand over a soft green silk while Sheng Hong was teaching him, on which she wrote a mournful love poem in brilliant vermillion ink. It was something like ‘missing you in the morning is heartbreaking, crying blood and tears in the evening.’ After reading it, Sheng Hong was so moved that he couldn’t help but go see Concubine Lin in the middle of the night.

Madam Wang was furious when she found out. “That concubine is cultured!”

However, after this time, Sheng Hong realized that he could not be indulgent with Concubine Lin, and Concubine Lin obediently restrained herself while Molan became honest. Under such a good academic atmosphere, Kong Mama gave fine instructions for more than half a month. After the Changbai County Examination, Kong Mama took her leave. Sheng Hong added many boxes and chests for her as payment. Kong Mama took half of them and returned the rest. “I’m a half-buried woman. With all of these things, others would think I came here to rob you.”

In the last few days, Madam Wang politely expressed her hope that Kong Mama would write letters to her former friends in the capital, and say a few good words for her daughter at home as a way to help Hualan in the future. Kong Mama smiled and excused herself. “Eldest Miss isn’t going to be a guest, and she is going to live in the capital for a long time. Over time, she will have to make her own reputation. If I praise the Eldest Miss to the skies, the expectations will be too high. If they are expecting too much, it would not be good.”

Translated into Martian, this sentence meant: don’t expect too much. If expectations are too high, it will be easy to be disappointed, but if they are lower, it is more likely to make Hualan shine. It wasn’t clear if Madam Wang understood or not, but she couldn’t hide her disappointment. So, Kong Mama added, “The Eldest Miss is a living sign. After she has children and can stand on her feet, if I’m still walking, I can shout out for the rest of her sisters.” Thinking of Rulan, Madam Wang thanked her with a smile on her face.

…

After Kong Mama left, the girls returned to their respective routines. Old Madam Sheng took Minglan back to study and read, and added a new subject – needlework. Kong Mama was replaced with Fang Mama. Fang Mama used to be a first-class maid who came over as a dowry maid and was known as the number one maid in the Hou Mansion. She was skilled in weaving, sewing, embroidery, shoes and hats, and patchwork. Although she was too old to do delicate tasks, she was more than enough to teach a novice like Minglan.

According to the living examples of Old Madam Sheng and Concubine Lin, Fang Mama saw that Minglan was proficient in learning calligraphy and reading. She was very worried that Minglan only loved poetry and literature, but she didn’t like needlework. Unexpectedly, Minglan was very cooperative from the beginning and showed a more enthusiastic attitude towards learning than she did with reading. Fang Mama was both surprised and delighted, so she immediately took out a complete set of materials to teach Minglan. So, in the morning, Minglan followed Old Madam Sheng to study, and in the afternoon, she followed Fang Mama to learn needlework. The old woman happily watched from the side.

First, let Minglan practice her needlework on a small cloth head. Sew the lines. Straight lines should be straight, round ones should be round, and the stitches should be fine and dense like those stepped out of a sewing machine. The spacing should be uniform and completely consistent, which was a basic skill. Just practicing this alone took Minglan a month. A month later, Fang Mama picked an afternoon to give Minglan an exam, and she barely passed it.

“Miss is so diligent in learning, how come learning needlework is not as fast and good as your ability to read and write?” Fang Mama felt this was strange.

Minglan silently said in her heart that those who cheat were naturally different from those who were starting from scratch.

Old Madam Sheng also felt this was very strange. “Do you like needlework so much? You are more diligent and hardworking with this than reading.”

Minglan silently shed tears. Ghosts liked needlework! She didn’t even play Cross-Stitch before!

Exam-oriented education had a great feature. For example, learning piano or painting was for extra points, studying hard was for getting into a good university, and getting into a good university was for finding a good job and earning lots of money. This sounded good because it had clear goals and direct actions, but it sounded bad because it was utilitarian. Minglan, who came from that time, began to think about a problem after studying ‘Thousand Character Text.’

As a woman of status, what was the use of being good at poetry, songs, music, chess, calligraphy, and painting? She couldn’t make a living by reading because she couldn’t take the Imperial Examination. Or was it better to gain a reputation as a talented woman amongst the children of nobility?

As a legitimate daughter, Old Madam Sheng would of course say: cultivate your temperament and cultivate your character, and you will be the light of the family.

But Minglan was not a legitimate daughter, and the Sheng family was not the Hou family, so she couldn’t get into that top-level aristocratic social circle at all.

Concubine Lin would probably say, “On my path to success, poetry, songs, music, chess, calligraphy, and painting have been very helpful to me.”

But Minglan didn’t want to be a concubine, either.

Until one day, when Fang Mama casually said that a medium sized embroider piece from Ruyi Zhai could sell for two or three taels of silver, Minglan suddenly found the best direction to work hard – whether she was too good at reading or too skilled in financial management, she would be criticized by this society. Only female nobles, safe and secure, could gain a good reputation, and in the future, if there was a contingency, it could also be considered a skill.

After polishing her ideas a bit, Minglan replied to her grandmother, “Needlework is really good. I can make warm hats for grandmother, shoes for Father, embroider sachets for Mother and my sisters, and even sew handkerchiefs for my brothers.”

Old Madam Sheng was moved and her eyes became hot. She hugged Minglan in her arms and cuddled her for a while. “Good child, it’s hard for you!”

Minglan was in a daze. Old Madam Sheng’s understanding was that studying only benefited herself, while accomplished women benefited their family. Her granddaughter knew how to care for her family at a young age.

In order to increase the fun of learning, Old Madam Sheng drew a few simple plum blossoms for Minglan to embroider. Minglan worked very hard to embroider, and just as she had finished one and a half plum blossoms, the spring plums had already fallen and peach blossoms just began to bloom. Fang Mama sighed and simply added a few strokes to the appearance of the flowers, so that Minglan could embroider them into peach blossoms.

“Plum blossoms and peach blossoms are different; how can they be changed?” Minglan protested in a low voice.

“It’s okay, the difference you embroidered is not significant,” Old Madam Sheng comforted her.

Minglan: “….”

…

In April, when the peach blossoms were shining brightly, the Zhongqin Bo Mansion in the capital wrote a letter saying that Yuan Wenshao would set off to welcome the bride at the end of the month, counting the days and arriving in Dengzhou in a few days. Here, Sheng Wei, the big brother of Sheng Hong, had also arrived. Originally, Hualan’s wedding should have had her uncle present, but now that Wang Yan was an official, he couldn’t leave his post casually. Only Sheng Wei was in charge of his own business and could act freely. He brought his second son Changwu with him to congratulate him. Later, he would accompany Changbai to see Hualan off to the capital.

When Sheng Wei and Sheng Changwu came to Shou’an Hall to pay their respects, Minglan was sitting beside the kang table reciting ‘Love Lotus,’ saying, “The flowers of water, land, plants and trees are very lovely… The only love lotus that comes out of the mud without being stained, the clean ripples without being demonic, and the middle and outside are straight, without spreading or branching, the fragrance is far and clear, and the pavilion is pure and planted…” The child’s voice was childish, and she recited loudly. The little girl shook her head with a charming innocence. Old Madam Sheng sat upright on the kang, listening with a smile and her eyes filled with a warm joy.

Sheng Wei’s heart moved, and he saw that Old Madam Sheng was in a cheerful and rosy mood, even more vigorous than when he had seen her two years previous. He glanced sideways at Minglan and saw her lacquered black pupils, bright and clear. As soon as she saw his arrival, she immediately climbed down from the kang and obediently stood to the side. Seeing her so polite and sensible, Sheng Wei was very fond of her, and his heart became even clearer.

After seeing the gift to Old Madam Sheng, Sheng Wei smiled and picked up Minglan. “So, you’re the sixth daughter. I’ve seen all your sisters before, but not you. I heard you were all sick but now you’re fine.” He had a square face that was quite weathered, obviously only a few years older than Sheng Hong, but looked as if he were ten years older. His expression was very kind.

Minglan held a pair of chubby little meat fists and brought them up to salute in a disciplined manner. “Your niece is all better, thank you for your care. Eldest Uncle has traveled a long way and has worked really hard.”

She had a crisp childish voice but spoke with the serious demeanor of a young adult. All the adults in the room were amused, and Sheng Wei laughed in particular, shaking as he hugged Little Minglan. Minglan’s face was flushed with anger from the laughter. Obviously, she followed the rules, okay? Don’t laugh, be serious!

Sheng Wei’s hand went into the folds of his chest and took out something wrapped in red silk, handing it to Minglan. “This is what your uncle will give you. Your sisters all have it and now you do.” Minglan looked up at her grandmother and father, saw that they nodded before accepting it. She opened the red silk and saw a brilliant golden light in front of her.

It was a heavy golden Ruyi lock and she hurriedly showed it to Old Madam Sheng. The old woman smiled and hung the thin chain around Minglan’s neck. She immediately felt that her neck was heavy, and quickly twisted her chubby body to bow obediently to Sheng Wei. “Thank you, Uncle.”

At this moment, Cui Ping came in with a small red lacquer tea tray carved with lotus leaves and roots. Seeing Minglan, she habitually placed the tray at one end in front of Minglan. Minglan reached out to take one of the teacups and walked over with a bumpy motion. Sheng Hong thought that as usual, Minglan would bring the teacup in front of him. However, Minglan’s short legs turned half way and lowered her head to hold it. She directly presented the tea to Sheng Wei, and only then did she bring the second one to him. Next, Minglan stood on tiptoe and took down the plate of fresh Shangdong dates from the kang table. She politely brought them to Sheng Wei’s table. Sheng Wei chuckled and cursed, “This sixth girl, after only receiving a gift, you are holding tea and service dates like this. Have you forgotten your own father?”

Minglan’s expression was pinched, her face turned red, and she stopped busily rotating her small body like a fat squirrel. She was so embarrassed that her hands and feet were at a loss, and she shyly said, “Well… no, it’s probably… I have short arms.”

Old Madam Sheng and the two brothers burst into laughter. Sheng Wei pulled Minglan into his arms and hugged her. Seeing her young and timid face, she really was cute, and he took out a delicate brocade bag from his clothing and put it into Minglan’s hand. “Your uncle has a short mouth,” he joked. “Here, these are ninety-nine newly hatched small fish, and I give them all to you! Little Ming’er, your food is too expensive!”

Old Madam Sheng was laughing so hard she nearly burst into tears. “You cheeky little monkey!” The surrounding maids also covered their mouths, and Minglan hurriedly picked out a dozen large dates from the plate and sent them to Sheng Hong, smiling coquettishly and giggling, “Father, eat, eat. This date is nice and fat…”

Sheng Hong smiled and pulled over Minglan, touched his daughter’s soft hair, then opened the brocade bag in Minglan’s hand. He flicked out a golden and exquisite small fish-like gold ingot, and placed it in Minglan’s little palm. “It looks good, take it and play with it.”

Realizing she had taken so much gold, Minglan became embarrassed. Her small face turned red and she bowed repeatedly to Sheng Wei. At this moment, Madam Wang arrived with a few children except for Hualan. Minglan breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly went to greet Madam Wang.

Madam Wang greeted Old Madam Sheng and Sheng Wei, and then let the children begin their greetings. Seeing the large gold lock around Minglan’s neck, Rulan’s mouth pouted and Molan lowered her eyebrows without much expression. After Kong Mama’s education, the two of them were much more well behaved. Sheng Wei exchanged pleasantries with his nieces; Rulan was petite and reserved, and Molan was civilized. Both were not very verbal, and Sheng Hong did not have much to say.

It was Madam Wang who was full of smiles. “You are too polite. I’m sorry for making you run around so far for Hualan and you brought many things here.” Then she turned her head and said, “Your brothers’ gifts are in the master’s study while your sisters’ are in Wei Rui Pavilion. You can get them later.”

The children immediately thanked Sheng Wei, and everyone exchanged a few more words. Rulan was very excited to go and see the gifts. Old Madam Sheng smiled and asked her granddaughters to go first. After the three girls left, the atmosphere in the room calmed down immediately. Sheng Wei turned to Changbai, who was standing across from him. “I heard that Bai’er passed the government exams. Sister-in-law really has good fortune.”

Changbai arched his hand. “Thank you, Uncle. I am ignorant and still need to study more.”

“We still need the last Imperial Examination to be considered a scholar,” Madam Wang said, full of pride. “Uncle, don’t be too busy praising him. It’s said that Wu’er is also studying, so they can go to the exam together.”

Sheng Wei shook his head. “That isn’t possible. I was not as good as my second younger brother when I was studying. Your eldest nephew followed me and only looked at the spirit of the books. Seeing those things, he would feel dizzy. Although your second nephew can read two books, he is much worse than Bai’er. I see he still likes to play with swords and sticks. After sending my eldest niece to the capital to get married, I plan to let Wu’er to go meet with General Instructor Lu Kuilu to try the martial arts path.”

Sheng Hong smiled. “That’s kind of you. The martial arts talents of General Instructor Lu are all first-class. He used to drink wine with me when he took the exam, and we haven’t had contact for years. I’ll write a letter to him later to ask to take care of Wu’er.”

“Thank you very much, Second Brother,” Sheng Wei was overjoyed. “Wu’er, why don’t you kowtow to your uncle and thank him?”

Changwu, who was standing next to him, looked about the same age as Changbai, but with a sturdy body, square mouth and broad face. He was cheerful and spirited. He happily kowtowed to Sheng Hong.

Sheng Hong quickly stood him up. “Eldest Brother is talking about these two families again. Wu’er’s future success is also our blessing. With his own brothers taking care of each other in the officialdom, can our family prosper?”

Sheng Wei turned his head again to look at Sheng Hong. “Look, your nephew Wu’er is useless. He can only become a martial artist in the future. It seems that you two need to take the exam together. I have heard that Feng’er’s poetry and prose are excellent, and he has become quite talented at a young age. He will definitely be able to take the top spot in the exam in the future.”

Changfeng stood to the side with a constant smile on his face. He cupped his hands and said, “I only hope that in the future I will be able to learn half as much as my elder brother, and I will be satisfied. In the previous dynasty, Zhang Taiyue was nine years old when he took the exam. I plan to try my hand next year.”

“Although poetry and literature are important, not all of them are tested in the Imperial Examination,” Old Madam Sheng said sternly. “You should also put some effort on the articles. Even your grandfather, who was a poet and scholar in Xinglin, learned the articles well first. You can also study with your older brother later on.” Changfeng smiled and agreed.

After talking for a while, Old Madam Sheng let the three boys go their own way, and the adults chatted for a while.

When they went out, Sheng Wei respectfully said to Old Madam Sheng, “This time, your daughter-in-law and niece were going to also come, but they have been hindered by family matters and cannot escape. I kowtow to my second aunt on their behalf.”

“It’s a long way to come here. Your wife is in charge of such a large family. We don’t have to put on these pretenses for our two families. How is your mother’s health? Is she still healthy?” Old Madam Sheng smiled.

Sheng Wei’s expression dimmed a bit. “Everything is fine at home, but Mother has been getting lazier and her body is not as strong as before. She often talks about you. I thought when you are free, you might be able to come and stay at my house for a while. It’s just that Mother is afraid you’ll become tired so she won’t let me say anything.”

“Tired of what?” Old Madam Sheng sighed. “Your mother and I get along. There is nothing wrong with younger siblings going to see their elder siblings. She is a weak woman who has survived for so many years but she is exhausted and suffering from illnesses all over her body.”

“It’s thanks to Aunt who supported us,” Sheng Wei said sincerely. “My family today is…”

The old woman waved her hands repeatedly to stop him from continuing. “Don’t mention it, don’t mention it.”

Sheng Hong saw the heavy atmosphere and wanted to find a relaxing topic. He looked at Madam Wang, who received the message and immediately understood. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been to Jinling,” she said. “How is your wife doing? The last letter I got said she was pregnant.”

Sheng Wei’s complexion grew darker. “Unfortunately, she suddenly lost the baby.”

A burst of oppression made the atmosphere even more heavy. Sheng Hong gave Madam Wang a dissatisfied look. Madam Wang felt very wronged; how could she know that?

Well, invigorating the atmosphere also required talent. Madam Wang obviously still needed practice. Sheng Hong was dissatisfied with her, so he decided to go out on his own and said, “What happened with the family you were talking with for Wu’er? Big Brother, you should inquire about it. If it’s okay, we can start preparing congratulatory gifts.”

Sheng Wei’s face was as black as the bottom of a pot. “Let’s not mention it. That girl eloped with the stable boy.”

The atmosphere inside the room became even more…

…

Hello foot, meet mouth.

Next Chapter: Hualan is Getting Married